Safety razor blade carrier



Feb 16, 1932'. A. D. BQULANGER ET A1. 1,845,955

SAFETY RZR BLDE CRRIER Filed Jan. 25, 1928 2 SheS-Sheet l I nulIIlIlllwme" a Feb. 16, 1932. A. D. BOULANGER ET AL `1,845,956

SAFETY RAZOR BLADE CARRIER Filed Jan. 25, 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet` 2 Patented Feb. 16, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ANTHONY D. BOULANGER .AND FRANK. P. KUBRICK, 0F RIDGEFIELD VPARK, NEW JERSEY, ASBIGNORS 0F ONE-THIRD TO FRANK D. BGULANGER, 2D, OFRIDGEFIELD PARK, NEW JERSEY SAFETY Razon BLADE CARRIER" i Application mea January as, 192s. semi naa-19,400.

Our invention relates to a carrier for safety razor blades, and particularly for blades of the double-edge type. Our invention contemplates in its preferred form a g, blade carrier adapted for use either as a stropper or as a safety razor. The main features of novelty in our-construction, however, relate to the use of the carrier as a stropper for double-edge blades, and its 1n utility as a safety razor is a secondary feature of the construction.

One of our objects is to provide means for automatically presenting both faces of each edge of a double-edgesafety razor to la the stropping surface. y

.Another object of our :invention is to provide simple means :for detachably holding the blade in position whereby it may be read` ily removed and replaced.

$0 A still further object of our invention is to improve the cflicacy of the stropping sur` face.

Another object of our invention is to pro# vide means for holding the blade firmly in position so that it may be used safely for shaving without the necessityof putting the blade in a separate handle or carrier.

To more clearly set forth our invention We have shown one embodiment "thereof in' 30 the accompanying "drawings, in which-h Fjgjl is a front `elevation of the device with the parts shown intermediate blade`-V strapping positions;

Fig. Q is a side elevation of the device as 'e5 shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is abroken plan View, drawn to a larger scaleand with the parts in the position they assume when strapping one face of one edge of the blade; "it Fig. 4 is a side elevation of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a broken plan view similar to Fig. 3, but with the parts in position to strop the opposite face of the same edge of the blade; i Fig. 6 is a side elevation of Fig. 5;

Fig. 7 and Fig. 8 are transverse sections respectively showing the L position of the parts when strapping opposite faces of the other edge of the blade;

50 Fig. 9 is a top plan view of the device with the blade in position for use as a razor Fig. 10 isa detail section on the line 10- 10, Fig. 9;

Fig. 11 isa side elevation ot the parts in the position shown in Fig. 9, certain of the elenents being diagranimatically indicated ;V an

Fig. 12 is a fragmentary elevation of a portion of the holder viewed from the direction indicated by the arrow 12 on Fi g. 11.` y

Referring to the drawings, 5 indicates the supporting handle or frame at the head of which are two oppositely projecting, angled, lips 6 rigid therewith, over which the strop 7 passes. Intermediate the` lips 6 is a friction roller 8 positioned below the plane of the lip mar 'ns onv which the strop bears, and thus deflectlng the strop to insure a suicient frictional drag thereby upon the roller under operating conditions. This dragis important not only because it is requisite to the oscillation and rotation of the parts as hereinafter explained, but also because it improves the effectiveness of the stropping surface. The roller 8 is preferably made of "5&5 substantially pure aluminum. As the roller slides along the surface of the strop, fine particles of aluminum are deposited on the surface of the strop and enhance its abrasive action. This metallizing of the strop surface l L by particles of'pure aluminum is of great practical importance to the efficiency of the apparatus.

The roller 8 is fast (see Fig. 7) on a shaft 9 which is journalled in a rocking U-frame 10. The cross-bar 11 of this frame haslugs 12 struck therefrom, by which the frame is pivoted at on lugs 13 at opposite sides of the head of handle 5. f

Asecond shaft 14 is also journalled in rock- 'lv-'J ing frame 10, and to a flatted portion of this shaft is rigidly attached the cross-bar 15` of a blade holder U-frame. The two arms 16,` 16 of the blade holder frame have journalled" therein the blade holder hollow shaft 17 (Fig. 10). To this shaft is rigidly `attached at one end thereof, and just outside one of the arms 16, a gear 18. At` the otherend of shaft 17 is rigidly attached the latching coli 4 lar 19, just outside the other frame arm 16. l-J

. is a slidable rod 32 with The collar 19 has two detent-teeth 20, spaced 180 degrees apart, which engage corresponding notches in the adjacent arm 16 of the frame bar 15. The frame arms 16 are so located and possess such inherent resiliency that the detents 20, which enter the notches in the frame, yieldingly hold the blade carrier shaft 17 against rotation with respect to the frame arms 16. A sufficient increase in torque vexerted on the shaft 17, however, forces the teeth out of the notches and permits the shaft to rotate with respect to the frame.

This torque is obtained through a gear train, comprising a gear 21 on friction roller shaft 9, which meshes with gear 22 fixed to the shaft 14 of the blade holder frame 15. At the opposite end of shaftr14 is loosely mounted a pinion which in turn meshes with gear 18 rigid on hollow shaft 17.

Associated with this gear tra-in is a pawl 25 fixed to shaft 9 of the friction roller 8. Its arcuate throw is such that in one extreme position (Fig. 6) the pawl 25 engages the pinion 23 and prevents further rotation of the gear train. This holds the blade in proper relation action.

Also associated with the gear train is an arm 26 loosely7 mounted on shaft 9 and shaped at one end to form a pawl 27. A bearing lug 28 at the other end of arm 26 engages Va notch in the ear 29 at the head of the handle 5.` When the rocking frame 10` is in its one eXtreme position (Fig. 4) .pawl 27 engages pinion`23 and halts gearrtrain 23, 24,18; when-the rocking frame isin'its opposite eXtreme position (Fig. 6') pawl 27 is disengaged from pinion 23 and the pinion is free to rotate except when halted by pawl 25.

The construction of the blade holder is shown in detail in Fig. 10. rlhe hollow shaft 17 is cut away (about half way througa) to provide projections 30 with tapering edges as shown at 31. Within the hollow shaft 17 hooks 33 counterpart to projections 30. @n the end 'of shaft 17 is a cap 34 Vbetween which and the end of rod 32 is a spring 35 which tends to force the hooks 33 of rod 32 out of register with the projections 30. A latch tongue 36 punched inwardly `from the wall of the hollow shaft 17, engages a recess 37 in the rod 32 and prevents relative rotation between hollow shaft 17 and rod 32, and also limits the longitudinal movement'of rod 32 under lthe stress of spring 35. To put a blade in position, the rod 32 is 'displaced against thev action of spring until hooks 33` and the projections 30 register. An apertured blade 38 is then fitted over theregistering lugs 30 and hooks 33', and pressure on the rod 32released. The spring 35 forces the rod in the direction of its length, thus causing the blade to be en- 23 meshing with idler 24,

to the strop for efficient stropping n gaged at opposite sides of each hole by a hook 33 and a projection 35 respectively. Because of the tapering faces of the hooks and the projections, the blade will be wedged firml. against the supporting surfaces.

To hold the blade securely in place when the device is to be used as a razor, we have provided a blade lock. At the opposite sides of one of the lips 6 are provided ears 39 to which are pivoted corresponding ears 40 of the guard 41. Whennot lockedin place the guard may be swung vcounter-clockwise (see Figs. 2 and 11) wholly under the lip 6. When resting on the blade 38 the guard may be locked in place by means of the notches 42. These notches are engaged by the arms-43 pivoted on the under side of the lip 6. The arrows in Fig. 12 indicate the direction in which the arms are to be moved to release the blade lock.

The stropping operation is as follows: As-

suming the blade to be in position on the blade holder and the parts in the position indicated in Fig. 4, the handle 5' is moved to the right, viz., in the direction of the arrow A; this draws face 1 of one ofthe blade edges along the strop as indicated. Upon the return stroke (Fig. 6) the first movement of the parts will be to tip the rocking frame toward the right, due to the drag of the strop 7 on the roller 8; this drag on the roller 8 by the strop 7 as the frame is moved to the left in this stroke (arrow B). will rotate the roller 8 in a counter-'clockwise direction and by means of gears 21 and 22 (Fig. 1) the blade holder frame will be rotated clockwise into the position shown in Fig. 6. It will be noted that when the rocking frame is swung over, pawl -27 is disengaged from pinion 23 and the whole blade holder frame consequently fiops over as a unit, there being no relative rotation between the pinion 23, and gears 24 and 18, due to the fact that they are temporarily locked by the friotional engagement of teeth 20, on shaft 17 of gear 18, in the notch of arm 16. During the period of the stroke in this direction, and after the gears 21 and 22 have swung the blade into proper position with respect to the strop, the pawl 25 on shaft 9 engages pinion 23 and maintains the parts in this-position` viz.. that best adapted tothe stropping of the blade edge. During this stroke the opposite face 2 of the same blade edge is being sharpened. Y

Upon again moving the handle 5l to the right (arrow C) as indicated in Fig. 7, the first effect will be to move the rocking frame to the left, thus lifting the blade away from the strop and also letting the pawl 27 engage the pinion 23. The blade holder frame will swing to the left, but as pinion 23 'cannot rotate, gear 24 (Fig. 2) will roll on pinion 23 with a counter-clockwise rotation, and gear 18 will be rotated in a clockwise direction. The rotations of gears 24 and 18 are stated with around the pivots until it liesl respect to the blade holder frame in which with res the gears are journalled. But as the blade holder frame itself is swinging around 14, the movement of blade 38 is chieHy one of translation with very little rotation (Fig. 2) By proper selection of the number of teeth in pinion 23 and gears 24 and 18 (6, 7 and 7 respectively as shown) we bring the blade 38 to the angle best suited to stropping. This stroke will strop edge 3 as shown in Fig. 7.

The fourth stroke (arrow D) will bring the blade into the position shown in Fig. 8, and will strop face 4. Further successive strokes will continue to strop the faces in the order l, 2, 3 and 4. Thus it will be seen that upon each stroke the blade holder frame is reversed in position and that upon every other reversal of the blade holder frame, the blade holder itself is reversed in position.` The gearing between the rollerand the blade holder frame effects the reversal of the frame while the gearing between the pivotal axis of the holder frame and the axis ofthe blade holder itself, in conjunction with the pawls actuated upon movement of the rocking frame, effects the reversal of the position of the blade holder.

It will thus be seen that we have provided a compact device for stropping all four faces of a safety razor blade, the successive faces being automatically presented to the strop without any adjustment being r uired by the operator. Also we have provide a simple blade lock and guard so that the device may be safely used for shavin without the necessity oi'- ti'ansferring the blade to a separate support or holder. l/Ve have also provided a slmple and quick means for removing and replacing the blade and have further added to the value of the device by using an aluminum roller which greatly increases the effectiveness of the stropping surface.

Te claim as our invention- 1. A double edge safety razor blade stropping device, comprising a. supporting frame, a rocking frame mounted on said supporting frame, a roller journaled in the rocking frame and a gear rotating therewith, a blade holder frame having a shaft journaled in the rocking frame, a gear fixed to said shaft and meshing with the roller gear, a blade holder journaled in the blade holder frame and carrying a gear which is geared to a pinion carried loosely by said shaft, and a pawl carried by the rocking frame engaging said loose pinion when the rocking frame swings in one direction, and disengaging said pinon when the rocking frame swings in the other direction.

.al double edge safety razor blade stropping device, comprising a supporting frame, :i blade holder and a pivoted frame therefor, :i roller adapted to be turned by the strop, gearing between the blade holder frame and roller for successively reversing the frame ect to the strop, means for reversing the b ade holder posltion in the course of every other reversal of thel holder frame, and means for positively holding the blade holder in the position in which it is presented to the stro Iiij testimony whereof we have signed our names to this s ecication.

ANT ONY D. BOULANGER. FRANK P. HUBRICH. 

